It has been known for a long time that house dust can trigger allergenic reactions in humans, such as asthma and rhinitis. It was reported, as early as 1928, that it was the dust mites in the dust that were the primary source of the allergenic response but it was only in the 1960""s that researchers appreciated its significance.
It is believed that the faeces of two particular house dust mite species, Dermatophagoides farinae (known as Der-f) and Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus (known as Der-p) trigger the immune responses of the body, thereby giving rise to well known allergenic symptoms.
A review of this is given in Experimental and Applied Acarology, 10 (1991) p. 167-186 in an article entitled xe2x80x9cHouse dust-mite allergenxe2x80x9d: A review by L. G. Arlian.
Both the Der-f and Der-p species are found throughout the world. In some areas, Der-f will be the sole Dermatophagoides species. In other areas Der-p will be the sole species. In still other areas, the two species are both present through, generally, one or the other will predominate.
One way to overcome these allergenic response has been to vacuum surfaces, such as carpets, that contain the dust mites and their faeces thoroughly and often, but that is both time consuming (i.e. has to be regularly done if one wants to make an allergenic free environment) and is very dependent on the efficiency of vacuum cleaner and filter bag used e.g. micron filter bag or 2-layer vacuum bags.
An alternative method of creating an allergen-free environment has been to denature the allergen, for example as described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,806,526. The only effective method however of which we are aware is to apply tannic acid to the allergen. However, tannic acid can cause staining, and this is a particularly acute problem for light coloured carpets (e.g. white and light beige carpets) and other textile surfaces as tannic acid leaves a deep brown stain.
Therefore, we have been looking for allergenic dehaturants which will not stain susceptible surfaces such as carpets and still deactivate the allergen.
We have discovered a number of allergen deactivants which are effective against both the Der-f and the Der-p species. Quite surprisingly, we have discovered that some of these deactivants are specific to the type of dust mite allergen being treated. For example an effective Der-f allergen deactivants will not automatically work effectively as a Der-p allergen deactivant.